28 September 2011

Bandung (Day 2)

Iswani and Pak Kadam had passed a chilly evening. While we, of course, relished the change from humid Jakarta to Bandung, even at dinner the night before Iswani had worn a lightweight weatherbreaker and Pak Kadam a long-sleeved t-shirt.

First stop was again the university, dropping off I and M for their morning meeting. As Pak Kadam then hunted down the off-the-beaten-track address of the batik showroom and workshop, we passed the following scenes:

The amazing workshop — which I highly recommend to anyone with time to spare in Bandung. The order of photos reflects our path through the batik-making area, not the steps of the process.

Reconstruction of a Javanese home.

Silk screening -- not a traditional part of batik creation, but this "factory" experiments with contemporary ideas. While the owners began in 1998 with Cirebon motifs, they've now evolved their own style.

Dyeing.

Applying wax with a cap.

My personal guide, an ITB design graduate, standing in front of a selection of caps. This is only a small sampling of those available.

Working on batik tulis (written = hand-drawn).

Cap manufacture.

Exiting past the silk-screen area.

Batik motif on denim, drying on a clothesline.

Tree I can't identify (like most) in courtyard.

Bandung street scenes after Pak Kadam and I pick up Iswani and Michael at the university.

We liked the Warung Pasta sign. A warung is usually a dimly lit stall offering traditional Indonesian dishes.

First stop on way to volcano: lunch. Another delicious meal, this time at d'Seuhah Da Lada. Seuhah, we learned, means "panting after" and lada is pepper: the restaurant is known for its spicy food.

Order being taken.

Bamboo ceiling beams.

Views from our raised gazebo.

Iswani and Pak Kadam.

We didn't leave the table hungry.

Beef ribs (I think) on left; tahu and tempe on right.

Chilis in kecap manis.

Can't identify these vegetables.

Sate kelinci. We had seen lots of rabbits for sale as we exited the immediate Bandung area, but only Michael and I, trained by our stays in France, were willing to eat the meat.

Gurame bakar.

The fish when we had finished. Iswani commented ruefully, "kuncing akan menangis": the cat will cry.

To conclude, more proof that the Monty Python sketch on How To Recognize Different Types Of Tree From Quite A Long Way Away is not standing me in good stead. Anyone out there willing to hazard a guess? These snaps don't really do justice to the brilliant scarlet/coral blossom.

About Me

I'm a collector: antique beads, textiles, children's books, and, unfortunately for my family and friends, "fascinating facts." This last category is more commonly referred to as UBIs (useless bits of information) and/or maternal spam.
I'm setting up this blog to organize various petits morceaux I've accumulated over the years, the bright shiny things that have attracted the attention of a magpie mind.